The Education (Postgraduate Doctoral Degree Loans and the Education (Student Loans) (Repayment) (Amendment) (No. 2) etc.) Regulations 2018

CHAPTER 4 E+W

Amount of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan E+W

12.—(1) The Secretary of State must pay, in accordance with regulation 13, the amount of loan an eligible student has applied for, provided that –

(a) the total amount of the loan does not exceed [F1 £29,390]; and

(b) the amount applied for is to cover the matters referred to in paragraph 2(a) or (b) as applicable.

(2) Where the eligible student –

(a) is not an eligible prisoner, the loan is to cover the whole or part of the costs of undertaking a designated course;

(b) is an eligible prisoner, the loan is to cover the whole or part of the fees of a designated course (but not other costs of undertaking a designated course).

Textual Amendments

F1 Sum in reg. 12(1)(a) substituted (with application in accordance with reg. 2(5)(c) of the amending S.I.) by The Education (Student Fees, Awards and Support) (Amendment) Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/85), regs. 1, 52(1)

Payment of postgraduate doctoral degree loans E+W

13.—(1) The Secretary of State may pay the postgraduate doctoral degree loan for which a student qualifies under this Part—

(a) either as a lump sum or by instalments; and

(b) at such times, and in such manner, as the Secretary of State considers appropriate.

(2) The Secretary of State may make it a condition of entitlement to payment that the eligible student must provide the Secretary of State with particulars of a bank or building society account in the United Kingdom into which payments may be made by electronic transfer.

(3) In the case of an eligible prisoner, the Secretary of State must pay the postgraduate doctoral degree loan for which an eligible prisoner qualifies to the institution to which the eligible prisoner is liable to make payment for the fees or to such third party that the Secretary of State considers appropriate for the purpose of ensuring the payment of the fees to the relevant institution.

(4) The Secretary of State must not make a payment in excess of [F2 £12,471]in respect of a particular eligible student in connection with any one academic year.

(5) The Secretary of State must not, in any academic year, pay the whole or part of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan in respect of a particular student until the Secretary of State has received from the academic authority confirmation (in such form as may be required by the Secretary of State) in respect of that year—

(a) that the student is in attendance or is undertaking the designated course; and

(b) if it is able to do so, that the student is not, in connection to the designated course, in receipt of any allowance, bursary, or award of similar description made by UKRI.

(6) The academic authority must forthwith inform the Secretary of State and provide the Secretary of State with particulars if –

(a) it becomes aware that the student is in receipt of any allowance, bursary, or award of similar description made by UKRI in connection with the designated course;

[F3 (b) the student withdraws from or abandons their course;

(ba) the student is expelled from their course;

(bb) the student is absent from their course for more than 60 days due to illness;

(bc) the student is suspended from their course (whether at the student’s request or not); or]

(c) the student is required to repeat a module or a similar unit of work.

Textual Amendments

F2 Sum in reg. 13(4) substituted (with application in accordance with reg. 2(5)(c) of the amending S.I.) by The Education (Student Fees, Awards and Support) (Amendment) Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/85), regs. 1, 52(2)

F3 Reg. 13(6)(b)-(bc) substituted for reg. 13(6)(b) (26.11.2020) by The Education (Student Fees, Awards and Support etc.) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1203), regs. 1(2), 10(2)

Provision of United Kingdom national insurance number E+W

14.—(1) The Secretary of State may make it a condition of entitlement to payment of the whole or part of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan that the eligible student must provide the Secretary of State with the student's United Kingdom national insurance number.

(2) Where the Secretary of State has imposed a condition under paragraph (1), the Secretary of State must not make payment of the whole or part of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan to the eligible student before the Secretary of State is satisfied that the student has complied with that condition.

(3) Despite paragraph (2), the Secretary of State may make payment of the whole or part of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan to an eligible student if the Secretary of State is satisfied that owing to exceptional circumstances it would be appropriate to make such a payment without the eligible student having complied with the condition imposed under paragraph (1).

Absence from, and repetition of, parts of the course E+W

15.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) to (5), if the Secretary of State receives notice under regulation 13(6)(b) or (c), or paragraph (2)(a) to (c) of Schedule 2 of an eligible student's–

(a) lack of attendance on the designated course; or

(b) need to repeat a module or similar unit of work,

then the Secretary of State may not make any further payment of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan.

(2) Further payments may be made despite a notification referred to in paragraph (1) if, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, those payments would be appropriate in all the circumstances.

(3) If the eligible student recommences the course the student must inform the Secretary of State and give full details of the length and cause of the preceding absence.

(4) The academic authority must inform the Secretary of State if the eligible student –

(a) completes the module or unit of work; or

(b) is no longer required to complete the module or unit of work.

(5) After considering a notification given under paragraph (3), the Secretary of State must recommence further payments of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan under regulation 13 if, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, it would be appropriate in all the circumstances for such payment to be made.

(6) After considering a notification given under paragraph (4), the Secretary of State must recommence further payments of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan under regulation 13.

Effect of becoming, or ceasing to be, an eligible prisoner E+W

16.—(1) Paragraph (2) applies where an eligible student who is in receipt of a postgraduate doctoral degree loan becomes an eligible prisoner and continues to undertake a designated course.

(2) The Secretary of State must—

(a) adjust future payment of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan or future payments of instalments of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan, so that the total of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan awarded complies with the maximum postgraduate doctoral degree loan amount the student, as an eligible prisoner, is entitled to under regulation 12; and

(b) pay any remaining sum of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan, or any future instalments of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan, in accordance with regulation 13(3).

(3) Paragraphs (4) to (6) apply where an eligible prisoner who is in receipt of a postgraduate doctoral degree loan ceases to be an eligible prisoner and remains an eligible student, and continues to undertake a designated course.

(4) The Secretary of State must pay the remaining sum of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan, or future instalments of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan, in accordance with regulation 13(1).

(5) Where an eligible student (“A”) ceases to be an eligible prisoner and would have qualified for a higher amount of postgraduate doctoral degree loan had A not been an eligible prisoner when A's loan application was originally determined in accordance with these Regulations, A may apply for the amount of loan to be increased.

(6) The maximum amount of the increase in A's postgraduate doctoral degree loan for which A may apply under paragraph (5) is the amount which is calculated by reference to the following formula —

Where—

F equals the amount which A would have qualified for if A had not been an eligible prisoner;

R equals the amount which A qualifies for as an eligible prisoner;

T is the number of days of the course which remain when A ceases to be an eligible prisoner beginning with the day after the day on which A ceases to be an eligible prisoner; and

M is the total number of days of the duration of the course.

Overpayments of a postgraduate doctoral degree loan E+W

17.—(1) Any overpayment of a postgraduate doctoral degree loan is recoverable by the Secretary of State from—

(a) the institution or third party which received the monies of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan where payment was made to such an institution or third party; or

(b) the student who received the postgraduate doctoral degree loan.

(2) A student must, if so required by the Secretary of State, repay any amount of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan paid in respect of the student which for whatever reason exceeds the amount of loan to which the student is entitled.

[F4 (2A) An institution or third party must, if so required by the Secretary of State, repay any amount of a postgraduate doctoral degree loan paid to the institution or third party in respect of a student which for whatever reason exceeds the amount of loan to which the student is entitled.]

(3) An overpayment of a postgraduate doctoral degree loan may be recovered from a student under paragraph (1)(b) in whichever one or more of the following ways the Secretary of State considers appropriate in all the circumstances—

(a) by subtracting the overpayment from any amount of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan which remains to be paid;

(b) by subtracting the overpayment from any kind of grant or loan payable to the student from time to time pursuant to regulations made by the Secretary of State under section 22 of the 1998 Act;

(c) by requiring the student to repay the postgraduate doctoral degree loan in accordance with regulations made under section 22 of the 1998 Act; or

(d) by taking such other action for the recovery of an overpayment as is available to the Secretary of State.

Textual Amendments

F4 Reg. 17(2A) inserted (15.2.2022) by The Education (Student Fees, Awards and Support) (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/57), regs. 1(1), 29